Ski binding

ABSTRACT

Improvements in devices for fixing a ski-boot to a ski. The device, such as a front toe stop or heel fitting, comprises a baseplate perforated by holes through which pass screws which are used to fix the baseplate to the upper surface of a ski. Each of the holes of the baseplate is provided with a deformable holding member, such as a sleeve or washer located within the hole, having a through bore of a diameter substantially equal to that of the screws. Each screw is thereby held by its holding member in a hole in the baseplate during transportation and is ready in position when it is desired to fix the device to a ski. The holding members remain in position, attached to the baseplate, when the device is fixed to the ski and are prevented from rotating when the screws are being driven into the ski. The deformable members can be made of plastics, metal, cardboard or other suitable material capable of being deformed.

Salomon Nov. 4, 1975 SKI BINDING [75] Inventor: Georges Pierre Joseph Salomon,

Annecy, France [73] Assignee: S. A Francois Salomon & Fils,

France [22] Filed: Nov. 30, 1973 [21] Appl. No.: 420,452

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data Dec. 1, 1972 France 72.42891 [52] US. Cl. 280/1135 R; 151/69 {51] Int. Cl. A63C 9/00 [58] Field of Search 151/69, 7; 206/341, 347; 280/1135 H1 1 1.35 R, 11.35 T; 9/310 AA [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,682,194 8/1928 Selah 151/69 2,761,484 9/1956 Sternick et al.... 15 l/69 3,681,594 8/1972 Johnson 151/7 3,749,144 7/1973 Gulistan 151/69 3,787,070 1/1974 Salomon 280/1135 T FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 6,415,320 7/1966 Netherlands 151/69 Primary Examiner-David Schonberg Assistant ExaminerDavid M. Mitchell Attorney, Agent, or FirmRobert E. Burns; Emmanuel J. Lobato; Bruce L. Adams [57] ABSTRACT Improvements in devices for fixing a ski-boot to a ski. The device, such as a front toe stop or heel fitting, comprises a baseplate perforated by holes through which pass screws which are used to fix the baseplate to the upper surface of a ski. Each of the holes of the baseplate is provided with a deformable holding member, such as"--a sleeve or washer located within the hole, having a through bore of a diameter substantially equal to that of the screws. Each screw is thereby held by its holding 'member in a hole in the baseplate during transportation and is ready in position when it is desired to fix the device to a ski. The holding members remain in'position, attached to the baseplate, when the device is fixed to the ski and are prevented from rotating when the screws are being driven into the ski. The deformable members can be made of plastics, metal, cardboard or other suitable material capable of being deformed.

8-Claims, 6 Drawing figures U.S. Patent Nov.4 ,1975 3,917,300

SKI BINDING BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to improvements applied to devices for fixing a shoe or boot to a ski.

Various types of such devices (such as a front stop, heel fitting) are already known, which generally comprise a baseplate perforated by holes intended to be traversed by screws used for fitting and immobilising the device on the upper face of a ski.

The fixing devices are generally delivered in their packages with their fixing screws separate. When the device is fitted onto the ski, it is therefore necessary, after having previously perforated starter holes .in the ski, to introduce the screws individually by hand into their respective holes, and then to guide them during screwing. Although this operation may not constitute a serious disadvantage in the case where an isolated fixing device is fitted, this is by no means true where a large number of skis have to be fitted out. Other major disadvantages are that there is a risk of losing one or more of the screws while they are being transported or of getting them mixed up, when they are of different types for the front stop and for the heel fitting.

Consideration has already been given to supplying the fixing devices in their packages, with their screws fully inserted into their respective holes and held in position there by means of an underlying cardboard sheet. The extreme portions of the screws projecting beyond the baseplate are thus engaged and held by the cardboard sheet through which they pass. This solution is not completely satisfactory since, in order to fit the fixing device, it is first necessary to remove the underlying cardboard sheet, which involves a somewhat awkward operation and leads to a risk of prematurely freeing the screws, with the result that they may become disengaged from their holes and get lost.

The present invention has as its objective the overcoming of these various disadvantages, by providing a simple and economic means for maintaining the screws in place and for considerably facilitating the operation of fitting the fixing device.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION screw is being screwed into it.

The members of deformable material used to hold the screws may be fitted sleeves or washers, of plastics, of sheet metal or of any other material capable of deformation. Holding washers or sleeves may be completely seated in the holes or again may be partially engaged in these holes or again may be arranged outside the holes, upon the axis of the holes.

The invention offers the advantage that the screws are firmly held in their holes and cannot become disengaged, even where considerable vibration occurs during transportation. Moreover, the screws are partially engaged and held by the deformable members, with only their points projecting below the baseplate of the fixing device, so as to enable them to engage axially in the correct position in starter holes formed in the ski.

Due to the fact that the deformable holding members for the screws are permanently connected to the baseplate of the fixing device and do not constitute harmful projections upon the lower face of this device, the fixing device when removed from its packaging can be mounted as it is upon the ski, without it being necessary to remove any parts, such as a cardboard sheet utilised during transportation of the device. Once the screws have been screwed tightly into the ski, the holding members of deformable material also with advantage fulfil the functions of anti-unlocking brakes, whereby they contribute to the complete immobilisation of the screws.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING ski;

FIGS. 3, 4 and 5 are partial sectional views of variants of embodiments of the deformable holding members; and

FIG. 6 is a partial sectional view taken along line 66 in FIG. 3.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In FIG. 1, a heel fitting is shown with a releasable heel-holding unit 1 of known type and shown diagrammatically in its overall arrangement. The fitting comprises a baseplate 2 by which it is intended to rest upon the upper face of a ski. Such a heel fitting is usually fixed to the ski by means of four screws, that is to say two rear screws 3 and two front screws 4, the latter being shorter than the former, and each pair of front or rear screws being symmetrically arranged with respect to the longitudinal plane of symmetry of the heel fitting 1.

Each rear screw 3 is engaged in a hole 5 pierced through a lateral flange 6 integral with the heel fitting, while each front screw 4 passes through a hole 7 pierced through a rider 8 disposed beneath the front portion 9, constituting a slide, of the heel fitting 1; it is upon this portion of the heel fitting that the heel of the boot will bear. For this purpose, the screw 4 passes through an elongated opening 10 cut out from the slide 9, to allow for longitudinal adjustment depending upon the boot used. According to the invention, holding members 11 and 12, of deformable material, are seated respectively. in the holes 5 and 7 so as to hold in place the fixing screws 3 and 4 and thus prevent them from becoming separated from the heel fitting 1 while this fitting is being transported and assembled. These members may be constituted, as illustrated by way of a nonrestrictive example in FIG. 1, of sleeves having an internal diameter substantially equal to that of the screws 3 and 4. These sleeves ll, 12, which may be of any deformable material such as plastics, metal sheet or the like, may be engaged individually and separately in each of the holes, either before the fixing screw is inserted or at the same time, or again as illustrated in FIG. 1, all the sleeves may be integral with a single underlying support plate 13. The plate 13 is fixed to the flanges 6 by any appropriate means, such as screws 14, or rivets or the like. The rider 8, in the holes 7 of which the sleeves 12 engage, is also fixed by any appropriate means to the support plate 13.

The holding sleeves ll, 12 may be formed in one piece with the plate 13, as by stamping out or punching if this plate is of metal sheet, or by moulding if the sheet is of plastics material, or again they may be fitted on to and/or into this plate.

It can be seen from FIG. 1 that the fixing screws 3, 4 are partially engaged in the holes 5, 7 and the holding sleeves 11, 12 so that only their points project below the baseplate 2. This permits rapid and easy fitting onto the ski. In fact, the operation of fixing onto the ski may be carried out blind, since the projecting points of the screws become immediately and naturally located in the starter holes of the ski intended to receive them. Advantageously, as shown in FIG. 3, each screw 3 has upper head 3a, stem 3b extending downwardly from the head and threaded from directly below the head, and a downwardly tapering, threaded point at the lower end of stem 3b. The threaded stem 24 is engaged and guided by a holding sleeve 1 1, 12, 24. It follows that the screwing operation may be carried out effectively, as well as rapidly, using screwing machines. The head of each screw and a portion of the threaded part of the screw project above the upper face of the baseplate, through an aperture 6' loosely fitting the shank of the screw, while a lower portion of the threaded part is shown as downwardly projecting from a sleeve 24 mounted in an enlarged lower part 6" of aperture 6.

FIG. 2 illustrates the application of the invention to a front stop 14 during its fitting onto the upper face of a ski 15. This front stop 14 comprises a baseplate 16 pierced by three holes: a hole 17 and two holes 18 disposed symmetrically with respect to the plane of longitudinal symmetry of the stop. In these holes there are engaged respectively screws 19 and 20. Underneath the baseplate 16 there is situated a sub-baseplate 21, of plastics material, which is also perforated by holes traversed by the screws 19 and 20. I

According to the invention, the sub-baseplate 21 carries sleeves 22, 23 projecting vertically upwards, these sleeves ensuring that the screws 19 and 20 are held in their respective holes during transportation and assembly. The rear screw 19 is shown in FIG. 2 in the position which it occupies during transportation and before fitting, its point then slightly projecting below the sub-baseplate 21. The front screw 20 is shown fully inserted and it can be seen that its insertion is made possible by the crushing of the upper part of the hold ing sleeve 23 into the frusto-conical portion of the hole 18 in the baseplate 16.

FIGS. 3 and 6 illustrate the case in which a fixing screw 3 is held in the hole 5 pierced through a flange 6, by means of an individual sleeve 24, of plastics material, entirely housed within the hole 5. Advantageously, rotation of sleeve 24, in flange 6, is prevented, even when screw 3 is rotated in sleeve 24. For this purpose the axis A" of screw 3 does not coincide with the axis A of the sleeve, these axes being, respectively, located on lines A and A, eccentrically to one another.

FIG. 4 illustrates the case of a screw 3, held in the flange .6 by means of a cardboard washer 25.

FIG. 5 illustrates the holding of a screw 20 for a front stop by means of a washer 26, for example of cardboard, housed between the sub-baseplate 21 of plastics material and the baseplate 16. By contrast with known devices, which comprise a cardboard sheet which must be removed before fitting, the washer 26 (and also washer 25 of FIG. 4) is intended to remain when this fitting operation has been completed and, for this purpose, the screw 20 is only partially inserted into the washer before screwing, so that its point alone projects beyond it.

In order to prevent an independent sleeve from rotating with its corresponding screw when thescrewing-up action is commenced upon the screw in order to engage it into the starter hole of the ski, it is provided that any appropriate means shall prevent rotation of the sleeve relative to the hole within which it is placed.

For example, the resistance to sliding of the sleeve upon the walls of the hole in which it is seated is such that, even during the screwing-up of the screw into the passage of the sleeve, the latter remains fixed relative to the wall of the hole. To put it another way, its coefficient of friction upon the wall of the hole in which it is seated exceeds the coefficient of friction of the screw within the sleeve.

The sleeve may also have a non-circular cross-section, for example a polygonal cross-section, co-operating with a corresponding shape of the hole in order to. prevent the sleeve from rotating.

More generally, the sleeve may comprise one or more elements (such as holes, lugs 14' or the like), cooperating with corresponding elements on the baseplate (lugs, holes, etc.).

In order to prevent an anti-revolving holding member from rotating in its seating, it is also possible to arrange that the axis of screwing of the screw does not coincide. with the axis of revolution of the holding member, or in other wordsfor it to be eccentric relative to the latter axis, which is also the axis of the seating of said member.

Moreover, instead of the holding member being de. formable throughout its mass, as in the case of the examples described above, each member, made of relatively rigid material may possess one or more recesses which impart to it a certain degree of deformation capability. For example, the holding member maybe realised in the form of a slotted skirt which can yield outwards when a screw is introduced into its central passage.

I claim: I 1. A device for securing a ski boot fitting to a ski, comprising; a baseplate for a ski boot fitting, said baseplate having a plurality of apertures extending through the same; I

a corresponding plurality of elastic screw holder means, each defining a screw hole, each screw holder means being secured to the baseplate in a corresponding one of the apertures of the baseplate to keep the respective screw hole extending through the aperture at right angles tothe base plate; and

a corresponding plurality of screws, each having an upper head, a stem extending downwardly from the head and threaded from directly below the headto a lower end of the stem and a downwardly tapering, I

threaded point at the lower end,,each screw engaging one of the screw holder means by having the stem in frictional threaded contact with a surface of the respective elastic screw holder means surrounding the respective screw hole, the screw holder means having means for resisting rotation of said holder means in the respective apertures incident to turning the corresponding screws in the corresponding screw holes;

thereby facilitating driving the threaded points of said screws into the upper surface portion of the ski at right angles to the surface portion for proper mounting of the ski boot fitting, by the baseplate, on the ski.

2. A device according to claim 1, wherein the screws are held by the screw holder means with the points of the screws projecting below said baseplate and with the heads of the screws projecting above the same.

3. A device according to claim 1, wherein each screw holder means is an individual elastically deformable member substantially disposed in one of the apertures of the baseplate.

4. A device according to claim 3, wherein each of the apertures of the base plate has an upper portion loosely fitting the respective threaded screw stem and has an enlarged lower portion, a respective one of the screw holder means being a washer mounted in the enlarged portion.

5. A device according to claim 3, wherein each of the apertures of the baseplate has an upper portion loosely fitting the respective threaded screw stem and has an enlarged lower portion, a respective one of the screw holder means being a sleeve mounted in the enlarged portion.

6. A device for securing a ski boot fitting to a ski, comprising;

a baseplate for a ski boot fitting, said baseplate having a plurality of apertures extending through the same;

a corresponding plurality of elastic screw holder means, each screw holder means defining a screw hole and being secured to the baseplate in a corresponding one of the apertures of the baseplate and having an axis laterally displaced from the center of a respective screw hole for keeping the respective screw hole extending through the baseplate at right angles to the baseplate and for resisting rotation of the holder means in the respective aperture incident to turning a screw in the corresponding screw hole; and

a corresponding plurality of screws each having an upper head, a stem extending downwardly from the head and threaded from directly below the head to a lower end of the stem and a downwardly tapering, threaded point at the lower end, each screw engaging one of the screw holder means by having the stem in frictional threaded contact with a surface of the respective elastic screw holder means surrounding the respective screw hole.

7. A toe stop for ski, comprising;

' a rigid baseplate having a plurality of holes extending through it;

a corresponding plurality of deformable sleeve means, each non-rotatably and non-tiltably secured to the baseplate in one of said holes;

a corresponding plurality of screws, each having a fully threaded stem frictionally engaged by a respective one of the sleeve means to extend through said sleeve means in a direction normal to said baseplate and to be rotatably and substantially nontiltably retained by the respective sleeve means before, during and after a time when the baseplate is secured to ski by said screws; and

a toe stop device on said baseplate.

8. A heel fitting for a ski, comprising;

a rigid baseplate having a plurality of holes extending through it;

a corresponding plurality of deformable sleeve means, each non-rotatably and non-tiltably secured to the baseplate in one of said holes;

a corresponding plurality of screws, each having a fully threaded stem frictionally engaged by a respective one of the sleeve means to extend through said sleeve means in a direction normal to said baseplate and to be rotatably and substantially nontiltably retained by the respective sleeve means before, during and after a time when the baseplate is secured to a ski by said screws; and

a heel fitting device on said baseplate. 

1. A device for securing a ski boot fitting to a ski, comprising; a baseplate for a ski boot fitting, said baseplate having a plurality of apertures extending through the same; a corresponding plurality of elastic screw holder means, each defining a screw hole, each screw holder means being secured to the baseplate in a corresponding one of the apertures of the baseplate to keep the respective screw hole extending through the aperture at right angles to the baseplate; and a corresponding plurality of screws, each having an upper head, a stem extending downwardly from the head and threaded from directly below the head to a lower end of the stem and a downwardly tapering, threaded point at the lower end, each screw engaging one of the screw holder means by having the stem in frictional threaded contact with a surface of the respective elastic screw holder means surrounding the respective screw hole, the screw holder means having means for resisting rotation of said holder means in the respective apertures incident to turning the corresponding screws in the corresponding screw holes; thereby facilitating driving the threaded points of said screws into the upper surface portion of the ski at right angles to the surface portion for proper mounting of the ski boot fitting, by the baseplate, on the ski.
 2. A device according to claim 1, wherein the screws are held by the screw holder means with the points of the screws projecting below said baseplate and with the heads of the screws projecting above the same.
 3. A device according to claim 1, wherein each screw holder means is an individual elastically deformable member substantially disPosed in one of the apertures of the baseplate.
 4. A device according to claim 3, wherein each of the apertures of the base plate has an upper portion loosely fitting the respective threaded screw stem and has an enlarged lower portion, a respective one of the screw holder means being a washer mounted in the enlarged portion.
 5. A device according to claim 3, wherein each of the apertures of the baseplate has an upper portion loosely fitting the respective threaded screw stem and has an enlarged lower portion, a respective one of the screw holder means being a sleeve mounted in the enlarged portion.
 6. A device for securing a ski boot fitting to a ski, comprising; a baseplate for a ski boot fitting, said baseplate having a plurality of apertures extending through the same; a corresponding plurality of elastic screw holder means, each screw holder means defining a screw hole and being secured to the baseplate in a corresponding one of the apertures of the baseplate and having an axis laterally displaced from the center of a respective screw hole for keeping the respective screw hole extending through the baseplate at right angles to the baseplate and for resisting rotation of the holder means in the respective aperture incident to turning a screw in the corresponding screw hole; and a corresponding plurality of screws each having an upper head, a stem extending downwardly from the head and threaded from directly below the head to a lower end of the stem and a downwardly tapering, threaded point at the lower end, each screw engaging one of the screw holder means by having the stem in frictional threaded contact with a surface of the respective elastic screw holder means surrounding the respective screw hole.
 7. A toe stop for ski, comprising; a rigid baseplate having a plurality of holes extending through it; a corresponding plurality of deformable sleeve means, each non-rotatably and non-tiltably secured to the baseplate in one of said holes; a corresponding plurality of screws, each having a fully threaded stem frictionally engaged by a respective one of the sleeve means to extend through said sleeve means in a direction normal to said baseplate and to be rotatably and substantially nontiltably retained by the respective sleeve means before, during and after a time when the baseplate is secured to ski by said screws; and a toe stop device on said baseplate.
 8. A heel fitting for a ski, comprising; a rigid baseplate having a plurality of holes extending through it; a corresponding plurality of deformable sleeve means, each non-rotatably and non-tiltably secured to the baseplate in one of said holes; a corresponding plurality of screws, each having a fully threaded stem frictionally engaged by a respective one of the sleeve means to extend through said sleeve means in a direction normal to said baseplate and to be rotatably and substantially non-tiltably retained by the respective sleeve means before, during and after a time when the baseplate is secured to a ski by said screws; and a heel fitting device on said baseplate. 